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Natasha Ivanova

Do you have to pay income tax on money earned from feetfinder in Canada?

So I recently started making some side cash by selling pics on feetfinder and I'm not sure about the tax situation here in Ontario. I made about $750 last month which was honestly surprising! I've never had to deal with reporting "extra" income before since I've always just had my regular job where taxes are automatically taken out of my paychecks. Does anyone know if I need to report this feetfinder money on my taxes? And if I do, how do I even go about that? Would it be considered self-employment income? I'm completely clueless about this stuff and don't want to get in trouble with the CRA if I'm supposed to be reporting it. Thanks for any help!!

Yes, you do need to report income earned from feetfinder (or any similar platform) on your Canadian tax return. In Canada, all income is taxable regardless of the source, with very few exceptions - and this type of earning isn't one of them. This would be considered self-employment income, which means you'll report it on Form T2125 (Statement of Business or Professional Activities) when you file your taxes. The good news is you can deduct legitimate business expenses against this income - things like portion of internet costs, any equipment purchased specifically for this side gig, and possibly a portion of your home expenses if you use a dedicated space. Keep detailed records of all your earnings and expenses. Feetfinder likely won't issue you a tax slip, so you'll need to track everything yourself. I'd recommend keeping a spreadsheet of all transactions.

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What if I only made like $200 total for the year? Do I still need to report that? I thought there was some minimum amount before you had to report income in Canada?

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There is no minimum threshold for reporting self-employment income in Canada. Even if you only earn $200 for the year, you're still legally required to report it. The CRA expects you to report all income, regardless of how small the amount might be. What you might be thinking of is the basic personal amount, which is a tax credit that effectively makes a certain amount of your overall income tax-free - but you still need to report everything you earn.

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When I was in this exact situation last year with content creation income, I was so confused about all the tax forms and rules. I spent HOURS trying to figure out how to properly report everything and still wasn't sure if I was doing it right. Then I found this AI tax assistant at https://taxr.ai that literally saved me from pulling my hair out. You just upload your income statements or even just type in your questions, and it helps you understand exactly how to report everything correctly. It was super helpful for figuring out what expenses I could legitimately claim against my content creation income. It's especially good for unique income situations that don't fit the normal employment categories like this! The way it breaks down the specific Canadian tax rules for self-employment made everything so much clearer.

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Does it work specifically for Canadian taxes though? I've found most tax help sites are US-focused and don't understand CRA rules.

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Sounds interesting but can it actually help with determining what counts as a legitimate business expense? Like could I write off pedicures if I'm selling feet content? Asking for, um, a friend...

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Yes, it definitely works for Canadian taxes! That's what I used it for specifically. It understands all the CRA rules and even the provincial differences, which was super helpful since I moved from BC to Ontario mid-year. For legitimate business expenses, it's surprisingly detailed. It helped me understand that expenses need to be directly related to earning income. So for your "friend" - pedicures could potentially be deductible if they're specifically for creating content to sell, but you'd need to document that they're directly tied to generating income and not just personal care. The tool actually explains the criteria the CRA uses for determining valid business expenses.

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Guys I tried that https://taxr.ai thing and it was actually legit! I uploaded screenshots of my earnings from a similar platform and asked about how to report it, and it gave me step-by-step instructions for the Canadian forms I needed. The best part was it explained which expenses I could claim that I had no idea about - like a portion of my phone bill and even some clothing items that I only use for content creation. I'm not great with tax stuff AT ALL but this made it super straightforward. It even generated a report I can keep with my tax records in case I ever get questions from the CRA. Now I actually feel confident about filing my taxes with this side income instead of stressing about doing it wrong!

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I've been in the same boat with my side hustle and the worst part was trying to actually get through to the CRA to ask questions. I spent DAYS trying to call them just to clarify how to report my online income and kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. I ended up using https://claimyr.com and was honestly shocked that it actually worked. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c but basically they hold your place in the CRA phone queue and call you when an agent is about to answer. I got through to a real person at the CRA in like 20 minutes instead of spending my whole day on hold. The agent gave me the exact info I needed about reporting platform income in Ontario and now I know exactly what forms to use and how to avoid any red flags on my return. Seriously saved me so much frustration!

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Wait how does this actually work? Like they just call the CRA for you? Seems kinda sketchy tbh.

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I'm sure this is just BS. The CRA phone system is notoriously terrible. Nothing can fix that government mess. You probably work for this company.

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No, they don't call the CRA for you. They have a system that holds your place in the phone queue and then calls you right before an agent picks up. So you're the one who actually talks to the CRA - you just don't have to listen to the hold music for 3 hours. I was pretty skeptical too, honestly. I only tried it because I was desperate after trying to get through normally for days. The whole system is automated - you enter the CRA number you're calling, they maintain your place in line, and then when they detect an agent is about to answer, your phone rings and you're connected. It's basically just solving the hold time problem.

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Okay I have to admit I was totally wrong about Claimyr. After I wrote that comment I was struggling with getting answers about my self-employment income and gave it a try out of frustration. Got connected to a CRA agent in about 30 minutes when I had previously spent HOURS trying to get through. The agent confirmed that yes, all platform income including from sites like feetfinder needs to be reported as self-employment income in Canada, even if it's just a few hundred dollars. They actually gave me really specific advice about keeping screenshots of all my earnings since the platform doesn't provide tax forms. Also found out I can claim a portion of my internet, phone, and even part of my rent if I use a specific area of my apartment exclusively for creating content. Super useful info that I wouldn't have gotten without actually talking to someone!

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I sell content on a bunch of different platforms and just want to add that if you're making decent money (like more than a few thousand a year), it might be worth registering as a sole proprietor. It doesn't cost much in Ontario and makes everything more official. Also, start setting aside about 25-30% of what you make for taxes. I learned this the hard way last year and got hit with a big tax bill I wasn't prepared for! The CRA doesn't play around with unreported income - they often catch it eventually and then you'll owe the back taxes PLUS interest and possibly penalties.

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Do you need to charge HST on this type of income? I'm confused about when you need to register for that.

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You only need to register for and charge HST if your total revenue from self-employment exceeds $30,000 in a 12-month period. Before you hit that threshold, it's optional. For most people just starting out selling content, you probably won't need to worry about HST right away. But definitely keep track of your income because once you approach that $30K mark, you'll need to register within a month after exceeding it. The CRA has actually been cracking down on online sellers who don't charge HST when required.

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Just to add another perspective - I've been reporting my feetfinder income for 2 years now. I use TurboTax to file and it actually makes it pretty easy to enter self-employment income. There's a whole section for it where you can list your business activities.

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Is TurboTax good for this? I was thinking of using Wealthsimple Tax since it's free.

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Hey! I've been dealing with similar self-employment income reporting for my online business. One thing I'd add that hasn't been mentioned yet - make sure you keep detailed records of when you receive payments, not just how much. The CRA considers income earned when you receive it, not when you do the work. Also, if you're using any equipment specifically for content creation (camera, lighting, props, etc.), those can be business expenses too. Just make sure you can prove they're used primarily for business purposes. For tracking everything, I use a simple spreadsheet with columns for date, amount, platform, and any related expenses. Makes tax time so much easier! And definitely start putting money aside for taxes now - even if it's just 20-25% of what you earn. You don't want to be scrambling to pay a big tax bill next April. The most important thing is to report it honestly. The CRA is pretty understanding if you're making a good faith effort to comply, but they don't like surprises!

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This is really helpful advice! I'm totally new to this whole tax thing and honestly feeling pretty overwhelmed by all the rules and forms everyone's mentioning. Quick question - you mentioned keeping records of when you receive payments vs when you do the work. Does that mean if I took photos in December but didn't get paid until January, I report that income on next year's taxes? Also, I'm probably being paranoid but is there any chance the CRA could find out about this income if I didn't report it? Like do they monitor these platforms somehow? I'm definitely planning to report everything properly, just curious how they would even know about income from sites like this. Thanks for breaking this down in a way that actually makes sense to someone who's never dealt with self-employment stuff before!

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